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A few months ago our Emily Badger reported on a study
that found no direct correlation between home foreclosures and crime.
The researchers drew that conclusion from a thorough analysis of housing
markets and crime statistics in 142 metro areas across the United
States. "Moving forward, researchers should begin to think about why the
foreclosure crisis is not directly linked to rates of violent and
property crime," they wrote.

Before other scholars move forward too quickly, they might consider another study — this one set to appear in the Journal of Urban Economics
— that reaches the opposite conclusion. The new work, led by Ingrid
Gould Ellen of New York University, found that recent foreclosures in
New York City led to a 1 percent increase in crime on the same block.
The largest effects occurred when properties went all the way through
the foreclosure process, either to auction or bank ownership.